Menu

Falkenstein

Yesterday, we went for an impromptu hike through the Taunus near Frankfurt. While we did not achieve our original plan to hike up to Grosser Feldberg (the highest point in the Taunus), we did visit the Celtic ruins at Altkönig and had a bit of an adventure going off the beaten path on the way back. Here some memories from the hike.

The first stop was at the ruins of the Falkenstein castle (burg) … I like this picture… it seemed to partition the view in to two halves: history and time on the right, nature and timelessness on the left. (Mar 2017)

We started the hike in Königstein… right behind the Kurhaus… already in the woods with the ground covered in patches of green and white. We set out with a plan to get to the Grosser Feldberg (the highest point in the Taunus) by 18:30 and then take a bus down. (Mar 2017)

The first stop was at the ruins of the Falkenstein castle (burg) … I like this picture… it seemed to partition the view in to two halves: history and time on the right, nature and timelessness on the left. (Mar 2017)

On the tower of the castle seems to have remained intact – the castle was inhabited till the late 18th century but then fell in to disrepair and ruins. (Mar 2017)

We made our way to Fuchstanz on quite well-marked path… and then a short break later, we decided that continuing on to Grosser Feldberg would be risky given the time of the day. We barely had another hour or so of daylight left. So, we decided to make a detour to Altkönig, which is supposed to have ruins of the ringwalls built by the Celts in 400 BC. (Mar 2017)

Well – this are the ruins of the Celtic ring-walls at Altkönig. A bit of an anti-climax, quite frankly. I mean, I wasn’t expecting a standing wall, but there is nothing here and I failed to spot any information board or anything else. At least, now I know. (Mar 2017)

With daylight fading quite fast, we left the path and headed downhill through the woods… we did have a map, so it was not as reckless as it might appear. The floor was carpeted with pine cones and foliage from these massive evergreens… it felt like I was stepping on cushions… (Mar 2017)

We made it back to the car parked at the Königstein Bahnhof just as the sun finally disappeared from the horizon. To the right is the tower of the Falkenstein castle. It was a good day. (Mar 2017)